Rutland halts soil dumping at 2 farms

Monday

Feb 25, 2013 at 11:00 PMFeb 25, 2013 at 11:27 PM

By Elaine Thompson TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

The Board of Health last night ordered a halt to a massive soil dumping project until the town and the city of Worcester can determine if the soil being brought in from construction sites in the Boston area is safe and will not contaminate nearby drinking water sources.

Health board members said they did not know the operation was going on at Overlook Farm and nearby Jordan Dairy Farm until neighbors told them about 18-wheelers coming and going from the properties.

Board member Elliott Nadeau said the board should have been informed that millions of tons of fill are being imported to town.

“If somebody is putting something in my backyard, I'd want to hear about it,” he said. “This could have been avoided if we were aware of the situation.”

Kevin F. Gervais, owner of Clinton-based Lighthouse Environmental Management, and Richard G. Stromberg, principal hydrogeologist with EnviroTrac out of Sharon, said they did not think they needed to inform the town. They said the fill is safe.

Mr. Gervais said fill being brought to Rutland is currently coming from projects at MIT, the Pier 4 development in downtown Boston, and part of the Route 128 extension in Randolph.

He told the board he has done similar fill operations in Upton, Northbridge, Berlin, Northboro and Acton.

Board of Health member Karin Prucnal said she looked at the fill management plan on one of the websites of the two men. She said the website said they had already gotten approval from the Board of Health.

Indeed, the soil management plan for Overlook Farm prepared by EnviroTrac and linked by the Lighthouse website says, “The site was previously wooded land that was cleared in 2011 to permit the farming of corn. The permit to import the Biomix material was approved in 2011.

“The permit for the Biomix required approvals from the Board of Health, Conservation Commission and MassDEP. During the approval process, no issues were reportedly raised concerning the past use or the presence of potentially hazardous materials on the site, or adjoining properties according to the owner.”

Randy Jordan from Jordan Dairy Farm at 51 Muschopauge Road said he was at the health board meeting also on behalf of Dick Williams, owner of the Overlook Farm, at 29 Overlook Road off Wachusett Street. He also said he didn't know the town should have been informed.

“We're not hiding nothing. We're not going to do anything to hurt us or the town of Rutland,” he told the board.

Joseph Dell'Aquilla, chairman of the Conservation Commission, said he heard that more than 1 million tons of soil were being imported.

He said he's concerned about possible contaminants in the soil. He said that according to MIT's environmental health and safety section on its website, some fill from the school has high concentrations of lead, asbestos and fuel oil. He said the area where the soil is being dumped is near three reservoirs: Quinapoxet, which provides drinking water for Worcester; Davis, a drinking water source for Holden; and Muschopauge, which serves Rutland.

Kevin M. Scherer, watershed forester for Worcester's water operations and reservoirs, said he was flabbergasted that the fill operation got started without the town's knowledge, especially since it is near drinking water sources. He told the board a cease and desist order should have been put in place as soon as it was learned about the operation.

“I can't believe I'm listening to what's happening here. It's unreal,” Mr. Scherer said. “When obviously there's drinking water supply in the proximity, it would trigger you to notify somebody that you're doing this. Maybe there's nothing wrong with what you're doing. The problem is you didn't' tell us about it and allow us to make an informed decision.”

The board asked that information be provided before its next meeting, on March 25.